Brain shivers… brain zaps… brain shocks…
I do not know if many in the medical community are aware of this term that is thrown out there for such offenders as venlafaxine (Effexor), duloxetine (Cymbalta), paroxetine (Paxil), fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), fluvoxamine (Luvox), citalopram (Celexa), and escitalopram (Lexapro), but it is a very real phenomenon. Unfortunately, though many in the medical community have not had to rely on any of these meds in their own personal lives, I had a 2-3 year stint with venlafaxine from 2002-03. Basically, I presented with the inability to sleep due to anxiety of some personal issues (which we all have from time to time), and did not want a controlled substance. I tried paroxetine first and absolutely despised the drug. I quit cold turkey. Very smart for a pharmacist, right? (You can’t just stop cold turkey and expect to not endure some uncomfortable sensory disturbances.)
I found venlafaxine, at 75 mg extended release, to be a very good drug for its purpose of 9 to 12 months. However, what I didn’t expect was that weaning from the drug would be so uncomfortable. 75 mg in itself is not even a moderate dose, falling more into the lower dose category. I’ve seen higher doses much more than the lower doses.
To explain what I felt, I will do my best to try to break down into words the feelings. Initially, there was a sinking feeling in my brain. If you’ve ever been to the Grand Canyon or a very tall building and looked down, there is a falling feeling that your brain sometimes throws at you though you are not falling at all. That feeling would happen for very short bursts, 2-3 seconds, enough to disrupt my thoughts, my work, and my being. I would just think, “What was that?” If I tapered over the recommended taper schedule (usually a week at a time step down, but keep in mind there’s only one strength lower than the 75 mg XR - the 37.5 mg XR. Then where do I go? Literally it didn’t matter. The big divide between the 75 mg and the 37.5 mg was enough to cause the “shivers” in my brain - a disorientation, falling, weird, and uncomfortable feeling.
“Brain zaps” are said to defy description for whomever has not experienced them, but the most common themes are of a sudden “jolt,” likened to an electric shock, apparently occurring or originating within the brain itself, with associated disorientation for a few seconds. The phenomenon is most often reported as a brief, wave-like electrical pulse that quickly travels across the surface of (or through) the brain. Some people experience these “waves” through the rest of their body, but the sensation dissipates quickly. They are sometimes accompanied by brief tinnitus and vertigo like feelings. Immediately following this shock is a light-headedness that may last for up to ten seconds. The sensation has also be described by many as a flashbulb going off inside the head or brain. Moving one’s eyes from side to side quickly while open has also been known to trigger these zaps and sometimes causing them to come in rapid succession. It is thought to be a form of neuro-epileptiform activity.
As withdrawal time increases, the frequency of the shocks decreases. At their peak, brain zaps have been associated with severe headaches. They may last for a period of several weeks after the last dose and usually resolve completely within a month or two. However, anecdotal reports of “zaps” during a protracted withdrawal are known to last a year or longer.
My remedy was to open the capsule and to count the tiny beads and literally make capsules with less and less tapering over a 6 week period rather than the usual 2 - 3 weeks at this dose. It did eliminate the feeling, but it definitely helped. One could go as far as asking the physician for a 37.5 mg immediate release tablet and maybe breaking it up into pieces and tapering at the very end that way. Any way you dice it, venlafaxine was a pain and taught me right away a bigger lesson in remembering the side effects than any package insert ever could.
Filed under: Drugs
Hello. Stumbled across this one in my tag surfer.
Strange on two counts, one I am training to be a pharmacist (third year of a four year course, then a years pre-reg). Second count I just took my second dose of Efexor this morning.
I was started on it yesterday after being unresponsive to citalopram- which has been tapered down. A small question really - knowing now about the side effects, if you needed to would you take it again?
You have a great blog going and you are the first pharmacist to make it to my feedreader
Wow, That’s the best explaination of Effexor w/d I’ve ever heard. I have had the same experience and have had a hard time explaining it to patients. Do you think the IR tablets could help in this tapering? I realize they would have to take multiple tabs per day but it may work. I’ve sometimes told my patients to go to every 36 hours for a couple of days to see if that helps. Haven’t had very many people complain yet.
Thanks for the descriptive verbage. I think I’ll use it.
Kay RPh
I’ve been having the zaps, too and I switched from Lexapro immediately to Wellbutrin. I’ve been taking the Wellbutrin for a month or so and the brain zaps have become a pain. My question:
Which med do you think is causing the brain zaps?
They are worse in the evening before bed, now, I understand how an addict feels while detoxing.
For me the brain zaps were withdrawal from Effexor… never experienced it with Wellbutrin XL and I quit it cold turkey. Everyone is different though!
OH my God. I have the same feeling only that i can control and create the feeling anytime i want. i have been having these feelings since i can remember! But i don’t have much headaches. What is happening to me?
Thank you for describing the Brain Zaps so wonderfully! I’m having them while taking Cymbalta. I was put on it for pain treatment and the doctor kept upping the dose even though it wasn’t helping. I was up to 120 mgs a day. That’s when the Brain Zaps started. I then went down to 60 mgs a day and of course, they are still there. I’m going to try to get off the meds since they aren’t working and I have other bad side effects. But I’m concerned that if I’m getting the Brain Zaps while on Cymbalta, what’s going to happen when I try to get off it :-/
Thanks for your excellent description. I’ve been trying for weeks to try to describe this feeling. I get the sensations going down my arms, which is really odd. And it usually happens while I’m walking home - not a great feeling when balance is required
I have been reading forums now for over 6 mo. trying to find the best way to get off of this terrible terrible drug. I was on 225 mg for over 3 years and am currently down to 75 mg every other day(over 4 weeks of weening myself down. My Dr. has not supported me in reducing my dosage, however I can not afford the medication. My insurance does not cover the cost as I switched jobs and it is considered a pre-existing condition. The Dr. has been giving me samples, however I have to go in every other week, and the nurses give me hard time when I ask for the samples. I have no choice but to ween myself off. I read recently that taking 5 htp while weening down the dosage helps combat the withdrawl symptoms along with helping sleep. I have been doing this now for 2 days 75 mg of effexor one day and 50 mg of 5 htp the next. I have a question regarding weening down further, and if there is any other suggestions in combating the withdrawl symptoms. I read a flower essence tincture mixed with water throughout the day may help too, but I have never heard of this. Any suggestions you may have?
thank you for your website, having a medical professional that knows the side effects of this is so important, as I don’t know that my Dr. realizes the seriousness of this drug. How can the drug company put out something with such terrible side effects when getting off of it. It’s as though they make it that way so you don’t ever get off of it and yet they make you pay through the teeth for it.
Effexor is evil! No, it was actually a miracle for me for a while. But then I couldn’t sleep. I went off it, and had the rebound depression really bad. I also had the brain zaps. They are disturbing but they do eventually go away. I would tell anyone on effexor to never miss a dose — you will get nauseated and throw up and get weak to the point of falling on the floor — and if you taper off the drug, take twice as long as recommended. You’re still going to have the brain zaps, I am sorry. The withdrawl effects last for a month and sometimes even two or three months! It’s such hell coming off effexor that I would tell people never to begin it unless they had to. Brain zaps, rebound depression, suicidal thoughts, somnolence or insomnia depending on the individual — all to get off the meds.
In 2001 I was involved in a pretty scary wreck - well, it would have been scary if I could remember anything about it. I know I went from the backseat through the windshield and got to ride in a nifty helicopter and stay in the hospital for almost a month. I sustained a pretty massive bruise on my brain and a cracked skull among other injuries. I healed miraculously with no side effects, but upon dismissal from the hospital I was prescribed Cymbalta - just in case. Just in case I felt depressed after having lost my job and having to drop out of that semester of college, losing my apartment, having to move back in with my parents, and not being able to drive for about 4 months. Sounds like a pretty good possibility, huh? To jump ahead to the present, I have been addicted to that drug now for almost 8 years. 60mg a day, first thing in the morning, or buddy, watch out. “Brain Zaps”, foggyheaddedness, headaches, nausea, and a general feeling of warmed-over poop would be my reward for not taking my precious “depression” medicine on time every single day. Luckily I have a hook-up on samples or else I would have been forced to detox years ago. I tried so many times to get off Cymbalta to no avail. When I was a kid I was unfortunately drawn into the “drug culture” of the whole S, D, and R&R thing. I smoked pot every day for over ten years, did stints with addiction to opiates and cocaine, and drank like a fish. That was a long, long time ago - way before the wreck I mentioned earlier. My point in bringing this up is simple - Cymbalta is the hardest, most punishing drug I have ever attempted to separate myself from. I laid down dope and never looked back. This stuff… I seriously find myself thinking like a crackhead at least once a day. I havent run out of it - I just cant stand to be addicted to it anymore. I thought seriously about going to some kind of wilderness retreat or monastary or something for a couple of months in order to detox, but then I remembered that I’m not in the Rolling Stones, and I’d have to do it the hard way. I tapered down from 60 a day to 30 a day. Almost killed me. Miserable, every second of every day. Sleeping didnt help because as soon as I closed my eyes the most vivid and stressful dreams I’ve ever experienced would start. I took the 30’s every day for a month, then dropped down to a 30 every other day. This was torturous for a week or so, but it actually leveled out. No big “healing” or anything, just less of the brain shocks and I guess I got used to the nausea and lethargy. I kept this 30-every-other-day regimen up for almost 2 months, just dreading what I knew was coming next. Then 3 days ago, while holding my little blue and white capsule of slavery and punishment in my hand, I decided to take the plunge. I didnt take it, and with God’s help, I’ll never take it again. The past few days have been hellish. My poor wife has had to put up with me sleeping randomly throughout the day, shivering through the night with body tremors and brain shocks, crazy anxiety-like feelings of claustrophobia. I’m not trying to give TMI, but let’s just say that my libido is NON-EXISTENT, and I hope to goodness that when this wrestling match with my neurons is over, all will go back to normal.
All that said, I am encouraged so much by the thought - still almost just a dream - of never having to take another dose of crack, um, I mean Cymbalta again. I have suffered through this far, and I’m not giving up. The symptoms arent really clearing up yet, but I believe they will with time. I plan to begin a steady regimen of exercise as soon as I can walk without feeling like I’m going to have an anneurism.
Bottom line, please dont ever let a doctor or pharmacist or any other member of the Medical Industrial Complex convince you into taking this drug. If you’re depressed, listen to some albums by the Cure or something.
Just dont get hooked on this terrible drug.
I’m glad I found this website. I was taking Zoloft for a while but I had an alcohol problem and I was abusing it while taking Zoloft until I admitted myself to a mental hospital for a week I took Wellbutrin in the hospital with no real side effects but as soon as I got home and picked up my prescription and took the first few doses over the course of 2 days (I am supposed to take 2 a day) I started to feel these “Brain Zaps” most times followed by dizziness. They seem to happen randomly and are very unsettling, almost making my eyes roll to the back of my head each time and interrupting my thoughts at the time. I wonder if this is withdraw from the Zoloft, or a combination of Detox from alcohol and Zoloft or just a side effect from the Wellbutrin.
Thank you again for this information. I was worried that this was a serious life threatening side effect but it seems its just an annoyance I have to cope with.
I was on Paxil(25 mg) for most of last year then switched(under Dr. supervision)to Cymbalta(30 mg) for a few months,but I couldn’t afford it(no generic)so my Dr. switched me to Celexa(20 mg) in January which I took for a couple of weeks but I had constant headaches so my doctor said to get off the drug. I tapered down to 10mg for about a week then last Monday got off it entirely. Now I’m suffering with the worst brain zaps and dizziness I’ve had dealt with. I pray this doesn’t last for more than another week or two. I was tempted to get back on Celexa and take 5mg for another week but I’m so anti drug right now. Is there anything I can take to lessen the pain? I was also taking about 25mg of Trazadone at night which I stopped recently too.
Right now my head is throbbing and wobbling around on the neck. I hate my psychiatrist. He seems overmedicated himself and never has anything really helpful to tell me. I feel like calling my regular doctor to see what he recommended. Any advice?
Just thought I’d leave a follow-up note. After researching online I decided to give Dramamine and Fish Oil w/Omega-3 a try. Wow….what a difference. One day and I already feel better. Still a little woozy but better. Plus the fish oil supposedly works on depression and I can vouch for that now! It really helped my mood.I read that too that taking a good B-complex vitamin is important during withdrawal so I’m taking that also. This is when I love the Internet, cause I never wouldn’t know about any remedies otherwise.
I started taking Celexa in 2000 when I had an especially severe and long-lasting depressive episode. I stayed on it for two years. Very early on I started getting “brain shivers” (or what you will) within no more than an hour of missing a dose.
To be honest, I think I was to fascinated by the experience to be worried. It is such a bizarre and unique experience and falls well out of the categories of “dizziness,” “vertigo,” and “paresthesia” to which it is commonly attributed.
I describe it as the sort of feeling one would expect if one could feel the electrical impulses between the neurons. It feels like you licked a nine-volt battery with your brain but without any sense of pain. It is an entirely electrical sensation.
I’ve been off Celexa for about 5 years now and still, rarely, experience these brain shivers, usually when I am over exhausted and have had a drink. It is certainly less rare then when I first quit Celexa (tapering off over three months), maybe, at most, 4 times a year, but it does still happen.
Occasionally I google the variations of “brain shivers/shocks/zaps/etc..” to see what sort of information has become available and what research is being done in this area. It continues to amaze me that so little is known and so little is being done to find out.
We must be at a point, now, where there are enough people who are or have experienced this that it must be taken seriously as a previously unknown symptom and/or experience.
I really am still more fascinated by it than concerned about the implications (it is still, quite obviously, affecting my brain on a physical level- there is cause for concern there!). The simple fact that these relatively new medications can cause completely new and unique symptoms is, to me, a wonderful and exciting opportunity to further understand the human brain. Unfortunately it seems the medical, psychiatric, and scientific communities are more intent on dismissing our experiences in what I can only assume is an attempt to mitigate vaguely legal repercussions of a symptom that doesn’t, thus far, seem to be debilitating to any significant degree.
To me what is most sad about all of this is that we are not taking this opportunity to learn.
Oh, and I invite any medical professional who doubts the unique nature of brain shivers to try Effexor for a good two months. I suggest Effexor because it seems to be the most likely to cause brain shivers. My experience with Celexa, as far as I can tell, seems less common though not uncommon. I think I can speak for most of us when I say that things like dizziness and vertigo will be, at most, secondary to the brain shocks (and, for me, things I never experienced) and completely different from paresthesia altogether.
Please, someone, do some real research into this! Inquiring minds do what to know. Don’t you? Or do you really think we already know everything about the human brain?
Ive had to come off effexor, because i had to go on endep, i feel so bad,im getting brain zaps as i write. I hope this dosent happen for too long, thought endep would help transition, bullshit ,help this feels like hell, even having a conversation is too much.
are the brain zaps dangerous? What effects do they have on the brains?
I was on Lexapro 10 mg for just 5 days and I got terrible brain zaps. It felt like little electrical jolts moving around near my left temple and across my forehead. Felt like something was moving back and forth at times. Just being my anxious self when talking to someone make it much worse. I would have to stop conversations to just go deal with the zaps. Well, I stopped after 5 days and it’s now been about 3 weeks. I STILL HAVE THE ZAPS, especially when anxious. I sure hope this goes away because it’s dibilitating for me. My memory is bad also. I was talking to a friend and literally forgot their name. I was wracking my brain during the conversation trying to remember his name. It was weird. If these symptoms don’t go away, I will sue the drug manufacturer. Great, a whole new set of problems!
Also, my teenage son has been taking Lexapro for almost 2 1/2 years. I never really bought into his “I can’t remember that you told me to do that,” or “I can’t remember anything,” speeches. I thought it was a cop out for disobedience. Not so. I believe everything he said now. However, without the Lexapro, he cannot function - or so it seems.
I have been experiancing these same exact things but have never been on any medication. I have googled everything possible and only find how it is related to withdrawls, but what about us odd ones that just have them? Any idea what it could be because I cannot find any answers and it’s making my anxiety level go sky high. I have a Dr appointment on April 15th, but it seems so far away…
I too (of late) am a “brain zap” suffer. I was on Effexor XR 300 mg (5+yrs) and slowly reduced the dosage to the lowest mg of 37.5. I found this necessary due to a time of unemployment and no insurance. I experienced very little in side effects from the dosage reduction. My rude awakening came from the last step off from the 37.5 mg. to nothing. For me it felt like jumping off the deep end but not expecting the pool to be empty. Ok I am rather extreme these days but this is pretty close to my feelings. Within 48 hours following the last dose the initial side effects were awful. It started with some bad flu like symptoms (major diarrhea, aches, chills, sweats, severe headaches and major bouts of tears). Today is day 7 and I have still have nausea and depression (varies through-out the day). Yet by far the worst symptoms are the “brain zaps” and what I have only read above from Matt as “foggy headedness”. I call this “brain fog” and to explain mine it is heaviness in the mind and inability to process my thoughts clearly on paper or to others. It is like an inability to focus, stay focused or to extract the appropriate data through the fog quickly or if at all. I can’t seem to find the right words or information and if I can it is delayed. Note this condition seems to fluctuate throughout the day. An example is that right now it is not too bad but then other times I have trouble clearly discussing what I had for dinner. The symptoms of brain zapping and brain fog seem to come along with the dizziness. I could cope with all of this if I were independently wealthy, where I could just go to my vacation home and veg while the staff attended to my needs (HA!) but I don’t live on that side of town.
The symptoms are so frustrating if you need to work or at minimum process a thought! I’ll assume most of the readers here need to do this too at least from time to time. I am currently working as a temp and would like to be hired but what employer in their right mind (please pardon my pun) wants a foggy crying brain zapped employee these days? I can’t focus at times due to the brain zaps and fogginess. Plus I have to hide in the restroom from time to time to have a mini crying breakdown. I have used the excuse that I feel like I have the flu or something and am not thinking clearly because I don’t feel well. Now this has really been the truth but how long can you tell them you have the flu? It has been awful but today was a bit better than earlier in the week. So I have been hoping it will continue to ease. Yet then tonight I read comments from various sites that the zaps can last many months or heaven forbid years (YIKES!!!) I can’t even imagine months of this let alone years. Wow! Where’s some help from these wonderful drug companies. They advertise like mad these days telling you how great you will feel when you take their drug and you can return to “yourself” again. Yet they neglect to tell you that you may “never” get off these wonder drugs or not without a lot of very unpleasant side effects. Where do they tell you that these side effects may affect your everyday life and for who know how long and when you can return to the “normal days” of pre-brain zapping and fogging. I am not one of our current-day sue happy persons but isn’t it time the drug companies take some responsibility in providing some relief for withdrawal process? Maybe they could even make a buck or two in the weaning process by selling a withdrawal kit? Please pardon the sarcasm of my last question as I am certain they can make a lot more money hoping you will give up and return to a lifetime of dependence on their drugs. Please don’t misunderstand me in my questions and comments as I know that there are very valid needs for long-term administration of these drugs for conditions of chronic depression and anxiety. (I may possibly be one who will return to medication if my depression returns later but this will have to be seen). I thank God for the minds of our medical science professionals that have helped us and will continue to help with such terrible diseases. Effexor helped me stabilize during a very rough time in my life of great loss and for that I am forever thankful but where is our so much needed help from the doctors and drug companies when there is a want/need to stop taking these miracle pills. There are just as many folks that only need these meds on a temporary basis. Isn’t there a better way to transition back to a life without these meds and the terrible side effects? Also why can’t they do more to inform people of these potential issues? I am trying the fish oil and the vitamin B complex but I was wondering if anyone knows the safe maximum dosage is and if there are any other supplements, herbs or remedies known to be effective in coping with the side effects. I would like to thank everyone who has listed their experiences as it certainly helps to know you aren’t the only one. I am so hopeful that there is a way to shorten the length of time and intensity of the “brain” affects. My thoughts and prayers are with my fellow suffers. One final thought or question, does anyone know where we can go to voice opinions/concerns that might make a difference in changing the way drug companies handle their responsibility on this issue. I am not educated in this area but would like to make a difference for others.
I have been taking Prozac for a little over two years. I recently decided to stop taking it to reduce the amount of chemicals and toxins in my body. (Thinking I’ve been poisoning myself with processed foods for years bringing on symptoms of anxiety to begin with) My last dose was 6 weeks ago. About two weeks ago I began having feelings of electric impulses when I move my head or eyes suddenly. I’ve noticed it happens more often when I’m tired or hungry. I also realized today that I haven’t been taking my multi-vitamin, fish oil, or calcium regularly over the past two weeks either. I’m thinking an earlier poster may be on to something with the whole fish oil thing. I went four weeks with no symptoms of withdrawl, but without fish oil, I began to have brain zaps. And, as much as I hate to admit it, I find that my symptoms are diminished after having a beer. Way to go pharm companies for creating health problems instead of curing them. At any rate, I’m all about eliminating man-made chemicals from my life. My great grandparents never had weight problems or had to take a pill for anxiety. They also never ate fast food or had friends die of cancer and heart disease. They grew their own vegetables and caught their own fish. Modern conveniences are coming back to bite us. I think I am going to become a hippie. :o)
go to the link i provided, everyone posts daily about Effexor withdrawal.. it’s not just you all who are experiencing these horrible symptoms, it’s you.. me.. & a million other ppl so hang in there!!
I have been on 150mg of effexor XR for two years along with Trazadone 150mg Klonipin 4mg Ambian CR 12.5 Lorazapam 1mg Tramadol phenagren for vomiting and dilantin 300mg - I have taken zoloft in the passed as well as several other combinations for depression. Although I never really cared before I have gained over 70lbs in the last two years and have no sense of self worth what so ever. - I have successfully concord the above listed drugs with no assistance from any medical representative except of course the dreaded Effexor XR. It has been a little over four months and I have taken out 1-5 granules a day yes granules like small specs of sand. There are 500 granules in a 150 mg of Effexor I am down to Two (2) yes only two, and even with the very small decrease I have suffered extreme withdrawal. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THIS DRUG!!!!!!!!
When I first started to come off Citalopram a couple of years ago, I had the brain zaps. I didnt know what was causing them so I went to see my Doctor. I described the feeling as if my brain was being zapped by a cattle prod! The feeling didn’t last long (seconds) but would randomly come and go throughout the day, particuarly on waking and when I was tired. I told him how worried I was and asked if it could be anything to do with Citalopram withdrawal. He told me it wasn’t and referred me to see a neurologist. I had the appointment a few weeks later, but by this time I had gone back on to my usual dose. The neurologist checked me over and carried out some tests. I explained about my medication and the symptoms I was having. He made no connection with this and just put the symptoms down as muscle spasm in my head which he said was normal!!
Anyway, my doctor did change my medication to Escitalopram for other reasons. I was on this for another year, when I started to do some research about withdrawal symptoms - and I came across this site. I had such a mixture of emotions after reading the responses and experiences of others. I was angry at the medical profession for totally ignoring the link between the medicine and the symptoms, but relieved to finally know what was causing the zaps. I immediately decided to stop (though I had been weaning off the tablets over a couple of months and was down to one every 3 days by this time).
This was last September, and I can only just say that the zaps have almost stopped. I am only really aware of them when I am very tired, and some times when I close my eyes I get dizzy still and it feels like my eyes are rolling back. During the withdrawal process I was tempted to have the odd one or two tablets as the zaps got very bad after the first week or so without taking any. But I persevered and slowly the time between zaps got longer and the feelings became less severe.
I hope that soon the medical profession will recognise the terrible side effects of this drug and the decline in quality of peoples life whilst suffering the symptoms.
Good luck to all who are trying to come off your tablets, it’s taken me at least 10 months to be almost symptom free, so keep at it!
I’m glad I have stumbled on this website. I recently was given Paroxetine (Paxil) for anxiety.
After a few days of taking the med I nearly passed out at work. I got dizzy, eyes went into the back of my head, and then I came back to reality!
Many people say this your brain adjusting. Anyway, I continued on Paxil for 4 weeks until I went on holiday. This turned out to be anything but a holiday as by the 4th day I started to experience “zaps” and “jolts” for lack of better words!
It’s hard to describe if you have not had them but seems it may be linked to withdrawal from Paxil. It is like an electric shock or judder that goes through your whole upper body most notably the head, neck, jaw & arms. It’s not a nice experience and I panicked!
As time went on the zaps got less common although I seem to still get irregular zaps here and there!
One thing, I did stop taking Paxil on return from my holiday and the Zaps got less frequent. No doubt, this drug has something to do with it and i’m not taking the chance going back on them….
I took my first pill 2-days ago, and that was all I will take. I took the pill (37.5) when I left my doctors Tuesday afternoon. That evening I woke up around 2am and couldn’t sleep. I felt like my head was asleep, which continued through work all-day. Around 4pm I started to get wierd pulsating shocks through the left side of my head, which continued the entire 45 minutes as I drove home in the right lane just in-case I had to pull over really quickly (I was so scared). When I got home I laid down on the couch face up which seems to be the only thing that helped me. I talked with my doctor later in the evening and she said we can switch to something else, which I am scared to do. I slept really well that night (last night) although woke up at one point feeling like I had the flu. I took Robitussum and went right back to sleep. I woke up today feeling better although still had some numbness in my head. As I drove to work I started getting light shocks again, so I rested my head on the seat as I drove, which helped a lot. I’m now at work and getting electric shocks through my head again, although I was smiling continusly the 1st hour of work.
WHY would anyone want to ever take this drug? (Effexor XR).
I started taking the drug because my longiterm girlfriend and I split due to the fact that I was always in her face and could’t just relax (we needed space).
I want to really badly fix my problem to relax, but doing so by taking a drug that will make anyone feel the way this drug makes you feel is just not worth it. WARNING: NEVER EVER EVER TAKE THIS DRUG.
Instead, don’t drink, eat right and do some charity work so you feel good. This will make you treat others better. In addition, think about some things you did wrong in your life everyday to remind yourself you want to be a better person. Good luck to all, because if you try this drug you will need it!!!
I had been on zyloft, celexa, for many years, then tried lexapro for my Mj. depression. My doc & I were trying to find a drug that was helpful. None were.
Then he told me about a New drug: Effexor & how it is showing good result for a person with both depression & anxiety. Shall we try it? I said, “ok.”
My history is my body is extremely sensitive to meds–they either don’t work or they work with taking a very small (even pediatric) dose.
The Effexor was causing me all kinds of problems. But I was staying with it, to try to work my way through them. I found myself in the ER twice, before they concluded my pain & problems could be from the Effexor. I had taken it for four weeks. They said I should come off it.
We did as told in the package insert (USA) & I was off in a week. Prior to that, I was having mem. lose, couldn’t stand, sweating, shakes–in fact we counted 52 things going wrong at the same time. It certainly was time to come off.
My doc told me I should have called him right away–but since I had had similar experiences with just about every med I ever took, I stayed with it too long & the side-effects became severe. The doc said, if ANY drug causes problems at the 2 wk mark, it’s time to try something else.
So off I went. And here come the brain zaps as well as tinnitus and my BP in those 4 weeks went from 124/72 to 170/150 (It has not stabilized, even today.)
This was about 7 years ago–when Efx. 1st came out.
When I told my doc about the shocks, I could see on his face he didn’t believe me. I believe he really thought I was a “nut” case. I even thought so myself–these things can’t be happening.
My brain zaps were coming fast and hard.
Finally, thinking I was crazy, I called Whythe (sic) labs. They put me through to a nice lady who recorded post marketing symptoms.
I told her about the brain zaps and she told me I was not going crazy. These were legitimate discontinuation effect for some people, especially, those who have come off the med too quickly (although my doc follow the published info on how to do it).
She told me of private instructions they had for people who were having trouble with withdrawal. Go Slow. If the symptoms return go back up if you can, then try a slightly lower dose–because of the other problems it caused me I needed to get off as quickly as possible. But she said the 1 wk thingy in the publication was wrong. It’s more like a couple of months to get off. If having problems, do not cut the dose in half, but empty the capsule and try 3/4 of the dose, and on down like that. If 3/4 was too large, go to 7/8s. And gradually come off it.
It was nice of her to reassure me I wasn’t loosing my mind. And to tell me the “inside” info the company had on how to come off–too bad they didn’t tell these things to the docs back then.
The literature made no mention of the electrical-like disturbances, and severe withdrawal that could happen (as it does today.) I think I read on the web site if a person has been on Effexor for 1 week, they must be withdrawn slowly and watched carefully. –that really helps now!
My brain zaps were making a mess. They happened especially when I moved my eyes, side-to-side. Up and down was okay. When I closed me eyes, they seemed to go away. In a few days though, at their peak, closing me eyes didn’t help either.
I think the peak for them came about 3 wks out from stopping the drug.
They and the other symptoms gradually got better. For encouragement, I marked the calender every day & put a star on days when I felt a bit better. It took 10 months–that’s months, not weeks, for things to settle down.
Now, I have permanent tinnitus,shakes, BP uncontrollable, and instead of brain zaps, the occasional Sound of — zap, zap, zap when I move my eyes. But no more shocks. Just the sound.
Has anyone experienced the sound, without the shocks?
Now for the bad news:
So, 10 months to get down to a few zaps a day. Especially in the morning, when light gets to my eyes.
I hate it but can tolerate it. But the docs still think I’m crazy, even when I tell them it’s a published withdrawal effect. Oh, the lady told me they didn’t not know who long they would take to go away, or if they would go away at all.
–I suffered a nerve injury to my wrist. Have been taking pain meds for 10 yrs to cope with that. We’ve had to try many different meds, because of my sensitivity or lack of response.
My pain doc & I finally found a combination of meds that were least harmful to me and still helped the nerve pain–major drug is fentanyl.
On with my story:
My doc left that clinic. I’ve been shuffled from doc to doc for pain management.
A new doc asked me if I had even tried Cymbalta, it’s for nerve pain. I said, no, I wasn’t famailiar with it but would try it. (can you see what’s coming?).
I took 1, only 1 capsule of the smallest does and guess what–all the discontinuation effects from Effexor are back
Can’t walk, can’t see, hurt, my tinnintus has doubled, I shake so much I cant hold food on a fork/in a spoon, and the brain zap noise (not shocks though) have gone from being a few times a week to nearly constant.
I’ve been off the 1 Cymbalta for 3 weeks and the symptoms have not abated. Am I in for another 10 months of this?
Had that doc told me (as he was supposed to) that Cymbalta is a SSNRI, sister to Effexor, I would have never tried it. What really peeves me is I went through with him, face-to-face my problems with meds and what Effexor had done–even the brain zaps (I think this doc thought I was making it up).
I asked him agiain, what is Cymbalta for? He said, nerve-pain. Not once did he mention it as an SSNRI.
Now, I recall that my psychatrist & I were looking for a substitute for Effexor. He told me he didn’t know of any SSRI or SSNRI that he would consider safe for me to take. The only thing left was Wellbutrine and he was skeptical about it.. But we tried and it’s not without problems, but it did get me up & out of bed. But he told me again, if he hadn’t seen with his own eyes, what happened to me with Effexor, he wouldn’t have believed it. And he knew that his colleages would just put me on something else. But, he told me, don’t let anyone every give me another SSRI or especially anything like Effexor.
So, here I am, back to where I was 7-8 yrs ago. The symptoms, with the exception of the permanent damage had mostly disappeared, but now are back. The worse being the double loudness and my version of the brain zaps but no shocks–just the sound (which really throws me out of balance & pretty much are incapacitating–just from the sounds of the zaps.
To make this long, long story short. We’ve tried Effexor & know what it can do. Please NEVER (shout) try another SSNRI, such as Cymbalta, without knowing you risk bringing back all the old horrors. And if you do try it, be followed, very closely. In my case, it took only 1 capsule to screw me up again–so following closely wouldn’t have done any good. It’s a Russian roulette that I don’t thnk you want to play.
Please comment on having the brain zaps, but now, only the sound –
Oh, one other discontinuation effect I had, was with my teeth. While I was going through getting off the Effexor, my teeth were fine. One day, I was too ill to brush them. The next day, I noticed the enamle had begun to come off. The enamle had sloughed off the front of 22 teeth—scary, huh.